Corn Mill seek All Ireland glory with‘The Seafarer’

Carrigallen’s Corn Mill Theatre will once again fly the flag for Leitrim in the all Ireland Drama Final in Athlone next month.

Carrigallen’s Corn Mill Theatre will once again fly the flag for Leitrim in the all Ireland Drama Final in Athlone next month.

The talented and experienced group are bringing their very popular interpretation of Conor McPherson’s ‘The Seafarer’ to Dean Crowe Theatre, Athlone on Saturday, May 5. The festival opens on May 3 and will feature nine nights of drama.

The draw to decide the night on which each group will perform was made at the theater on Easter Monday. Welcoming the nine finalists, Festival Director, Billy Nott expressed his congratulations to the groups on their success on making it to the final. “You are each of you winners in your own right and we are truly proud to have you here today and wish you well in the forthcoming finals in May”, he said.

Brian Marjoribanks has been selected as the adjudicator and the All Ireland Drama Committee are expecting the Corn Mil Theatre Group to “put in a strong challenge.”

The group has won the All Ireland Drama Finals in Athlone on two occasions, in 1998 with Belfry and in 2005 with Stolen Child. Last year Seamus O’Rourke took home the Best Actor in a Supporting Role.

Sean McIntyre is the director of this year’s play. The cast is made up of Killian McGuinness, Raymond Hackett, Brian Reilly, Ronan Ward and Stephen Gray. The black comedy swept the boards at the Ballinamore and Kiltyclogher Drama Festivals and achieved awards at several other locations on the circuit. The Corn Mill Theatre Group have sold out venues with the production and have a huge legion of fans in the North West region.

The dark Dublin comedy centres on James ‘Sharkey’ Harkin, an alcoholic who has recently returned to live with his blind, aging brother, Richard Harkin. As Sharkey attempts to stay off the bottle during the holidays, he contends with the hard drinking irascible Richard and a past gamble he never thought he would have to repay. The language may be crude throughout, but the acting in anything but. Brian Reilly as the blind brother Richard makes you laugh and also makes you sad, he carries your emotions throughout. Ronan Ward who plays Ivan is the real comedy, scruffy with a drinking problem and almost blind himself after losing his glasses, his role plays contrast to the running tension. Raymond Hackett portrays the troubled soul of Sharkey, while Killian McGuinness is the perfect devil disguised. Stephen Gray plays a small role as Nicky, but his ego on stage is quite the opposite!

The Seafarer merges tension and intrigue with black humour and a little supernatural.

The drama returns to Carrigallen this Thursday and Friday, April 19 and 20, Thursday, April 26 and May 1, 2 and 3 before it hits the All Ireland Drama Festival.

An RTE film crew have been following the progress of the Carrigallen group all year as part of a new six part series on Amateur Drama in Ireland which airs this Autumn. The film crew will be in the Corn Mill Theatre again on Thursday, April 26 for a press night.

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